Digitale Arbeitswelt – Chancen und Herausforderungen für Beschäftigte und Arbeitsmarkt
Der digitale Wandel der Arbeitswelt gilt als eine der großen Herausforderungen für Wirtschaft und Gesellschaft. Wie arbeiten wir in Zukunft? Welche Auswirkungen hat die Digitalisierung und die Nutzung Künstlicher Intelligenz auf Beschäftigung und Arbeitsmarkt? Welche Qualifikationen werden künftig benötigt? Wie verändern sich Tätigkeiten und Berufe? Welche arbeits- und sozialrechtlichen Konsequenzen ergeben sich daraus?
Dieses Themendossier dokumentiert Forschungsergebnisse zum Thema in den verschiedenen Wirtschaftsbereichen und Regionen.
Im Filter „Autorenschaft“ können Sie auf IAB-(Mit-)Autorenschaft eingrenzen.
- Gesamtbetrachtungen/Positionen
- Arbeitsformen, Arbeitszeit und Gesundheit
- Qualifikationsanforderungen und Berufe
- Arbeitsplatz- und Beschäftigungseffekte
- Wirtschaftsbereiche
- Arbeits- und sozialrechtliche Aspekte / digitale soziale Sicherung
- Deutschland
- Andere Länder/ internationaler Vergleich
- Besondere Personengruppen
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Literaturhinweis
Automation and Polarization (2026)
Zitatform
Acemoglu, Daron & Jonas Löbbing (2026): Automation and Polarization. In: Journal of Political Economy, Jg. 134, H. 3, S. 1017-1072. DOI:10.1086/739330
Abstract
"We develop an assignment model of automation. Each of a continuum of tasks of variable complexity is assigned to either capital or one of a continuum of labor skills. We characterize conditions for interiorautomation, whereby tasks of intermediate complexity are performed by capital. Interior automation arises when the most skilled workers have a comparative advantage in the most complex tasks relative to capital, and when the wages of the least skilled workers are sufficiently low relative to both their own productivity and the effective cost of capital in low-complexity tasks. Minimum wages and other sourcesof higher wages at the bottom make interior automation less likely. Starting with interior automation, a reduction in the cost of capital (or an increase in capital productivity) causes employment and wage polarization. Specifically, further automation pushes workers into tasks at the lower and upper ends ofthe task distribution. It also monotonically increases the skill premium above a threshold and reduces the skill premium below this threshold. Moreover, automation tends to reduce the real wage of Workers with comparative advantage profiles close to that of capital. We show that large enough increases in capital productivity ultimately induce a transition to low-skill automation and qualitatively alter the effects of automation—thereafter inducing monotone increases in skill premia rather than wage polarization." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))
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Literaturhinweis
Winners and losers when firms robotize: wage effects across occupations and education (2026)
Zitatform
Barth, Erling, Marianne Røed, Pål Schøne & Janis Umblijs (2026): Winners and losers when firms robotize: wage effects across occupations and education. In: The Scandinavian Journal of Economics, Jg. 128, H. 1, S. 3-32. DOI:10.1111/sjoe.12593
Abstract
"This paper analyses the impact of robots on workers' wages in the manufacturing sector, with a particular focus on relative wages for workers with different levels of education and in different occupations. Using high-quality matched employer–employee register data with firm-level information on the introduction of industrial robots, we identify the effects of robotization on relative wages within firms. Skilled blue-collar workers with a vocational degree experience a decline in wages when firms introduce robots, while there are only small effects for the other groups of workers. These results suggest that robots are substitutes for tasks undertaken by skilled blue-collar workers in manufacturing, and furthermore that the adoption of robots contributes to a polarization of the labor market and a hollowing out of the wage distribution, rather than to skill-biased technical change." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))
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Literaturhinweis
Automation Experiments and Inequality (2026)
Zitatform
Benzell, Seth Gordon & Kyle R. Myers (2026): Automation Experiments and Inequality. (NBER working paper / National Bureau of Economic Research 34668), Cambridge, Mass, 26 S., App. DOI:10.3386/w34668
Abstract
"Many experiments study the productivity effects of automation technologies such as generative algorithms. A key test in these experiments relates to inequality: does the technology increase output more for high- or low-skill workers? However, the theoretical content of this empirical test has been unclear. Here, we formalize a theory that describes the experimental effect of automation technologies on worker-level output and, therefore, inequality. Worker-level output depends on a task-level production function, and workers are heterogeneous in their task-level skills. Workers perform a task themselves or delegate it to the automation technology. The inequality effect of improved automation depends on the interaction of two factors: (i) the correlation in task-level skills across workers, and (ii) workers' skills relative to the technology's effective skill. In many cases we study, the inequality effect is non-monotonic --- as technologies improve, inequality decreases then increases. The model and descriptive statistics of skill correlations generally suggest that the diversity of automation technologies will play an important role in the evolution of inequality." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))
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Literaturhinweis
Digital divide and income inequality: causal evidence from Italian provinces (2026)
Zitatform
Bergantino, Angela Stefania, Giulio Fusco, Mario Intini & Gianluca Monturano (2026): Digital divide and income inequality: causal evidence from Italian provinces. In: The Annals of Regional Science, Jg. 75, H. 1. DOI:10.1007/s00168-025-01440-z
Abstract
"The digital economy can function either as a catalyst to stimulate economic growth or else as a driver of socioeconomic inequality when its benefits are unevenly distributed. This study investigates the effect of rural digital connectivity on income inequality in Italy. Utilizing NUTS 3 panel data spanning 2014–2022, we conduct a counterfactual Difference-in-Differences approach with continuous treatment intensity to estimate the impact of introducing rural broadband coverage at speeds of 30 and 100 Mbps on multiple measures of income distribution, including the Gini, Theil, and Atkinson indices. The empirical framework incorporates a comprehensive set of socioeconomic controls, as well as provincial and time fixed effects, to account for unobserved heterogeneity and regional path dependencies. Our findings indicate that broadband expansion is significantly associated with increasing inequality, suggesting that access alone does not guarantee inclusive outcomes, particularly in localities characterized by structural fragility and limited human capital. Additional heterogeneity and spatial analyses demonstrate that these inequality effects are more evident in southern provinces and localities with a higher concentration of inner areas, where the digital divide remains more pronounced. These findings accentuate the dual role of digitalization and highlight the necessity of coordinated policy interventions that combine infrastructure investment with digital skills development, institutional capacity-building, and spatially integrated governance strategies." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))
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Literaturhinweis
Re‐Skilling in the Age of Skill Shortage: Adult Education Rather Than Active Labor Market Policy: Special Issue: Bringing the Ecological and the Social Together in the Green Transition: A Multilevel Analysis (2026)
Zitatform
Bonoli, Giuliano, Patrick Emmenegger & Alina Felder-Stindt (2026): Re‐Skilling in the Age of Skill Shortage: Adult Education Rather Than Active Labor Market Policy. Special Issue: Bringing the Ecological and the Social Together in the Green Transition: A Multilevel Analysis. In: Regulation and governance, Jg. 20, H. 2, S. 482-494. DOI:10.1111/rego.70065
Abstract
"European economies face the task of providing the necessary skills for the “twin transition ” in a period of skill shortage. As a result, we may expect countries to reorient their labor market policy towards re-skilling. We look for evidence of a reorientation in two relevant policy fields: active labor market policy (ALMP) and adult education (AE). We explore general trends in both fields based on quantitative indicators and compare recent policy developments in four countries with strong ALMP and AE sectors: Denmark, France, Germany, and Sweden. We do not observe clear evidence of a general movement away from activation and towards re-skilling in ALMP. However, in AE, we identify several re-skilling initiatives that address skill shortages. Relying on insights from queuing theories of hiring and training, we argue that due to changes in the population targeted by ALMP, the locus of re-skilling policy is increasingly moving towards AE." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))
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Literaturhinweis
Revisiting the occupational impact of AI in the generative AI era (2026)
Casas, P.; González-Vázquez, I.; Salotti, S.; Martínez-Plumed, F.; Gómez, E.; Fernández-Macías, E.;Zitatform
Casas, P., E. Fernández-Macías, F. Martínez-Plumed, E. Gómez, I. González-Vázquez & S. Salotti (2026): Revisiting the occupational impact of AI in the generative AI era. (JRC working papers series on labour, education and technology 2026,02), Sevilla, 71 S.
Abstract
"Generative AI is reshaping what artificial intelligence can do in the workplace, calling into question pre-GenAI assessments of which workers and tasks are most exposed. In this paper we trace the evolution of AI exposure in the European labour market from 2008 to 2024 by linking 352 AI benchmarks to 14 cognitive abilities, 108 work tasks and 127 ISCO-3 occupations, weighting benchmarks by their research intensity in the AI literature and thus deriving AI exposure by cognitive ability. Bundling work tasks into occupations based on intensity indicators, we explore occupational exposure to AI. We find that the cognitive abilities most exposed to the recent surge of AI research are ideas-related, such as attention and search, comprehension and expression and logical reasoning. Because the associated information processing and problem-solving tasks are the most transversal across occupations, we find an exponential increase in AI exposure across all occupational categories of workers, even though comparatively high-skilled occupations are more exposed than elementary occupations. This points at a substantial and transversal labour market impact of AI." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))
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Literaturhinweis
How welfare states influence online platform work in Europe (2026)
Zitatform
Chueri, Juliana & Petter Törnberg (2026): How welfare states influence online platform work in Europe. In: Journal of European Social Policy, Jg. 36, H. 2, S. 119-135. DOI:10.1177/09589287251357463
Abstract
"Digital labor platforms are reshaping global labor markets by enabling the transnational contracting of service workers. While the dominant perspective emphasizes market forces, predicting that lower-wage countries will dominate the supply side, this view overlooks the institutional context in which platform labor emerges. This paper advances the argument that national welfare institutions are key to shaping participation in the platform economy. We provide the first large-scale cross-national comparative analysis of platform labor, combining micro-level data from one of the world’s largest remote work platforms with country-level indicators from 26 European countries. In line with market expectations, we find that lower-wage countries supply most low-skilled labor, while higher-wage countries show a more balanced distribution between low- and high-skilled workers. Crucially, however, our analysis reveals that greater welfare state generosity is associated with lower levels of platform participation, especially in low-skilled occupations. We argue that platform labor cannot be understood solely as a function of technological change or wage differentials. It is also an expression of structural constraints: where social protections are weak, people are more likely to turn to precarious forms of online work." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))
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Literaturhinweis
Retirement decisions in the age of COVID-19 pandemic: are older employees in digital occupations working longer? (2026)
Zitatform
Gallo, Giovanni & Amparo Nagore García (2026): Retirement decisions in the age of COVID-19 pandemic: are older employees in digital occupations working longer? In: Review of Economics of the Household, S. 1-34. DOI:10.1007/s11150-025-09827-9
Abstract
"This paper investigates the retirement response to the pandemic and to the resulting acceleration in the adoption of new technologies. Using the European Union Statistics of Income and Living Conditions datasets and leveraging the natural experiment of many workers being forced to work from home in Europe during the lockdown, we compare the retirement response of older workers in digital occupations (i.e. more exposed to the accelerated adoption of new technologies) versus non-digital occupations to detect any differences in retirement behaviour, which we interpret as digitalization effects. In addition, we analyze changes in retirement decisions by gender and geographic area. We find that retirement rates increased during COVID-19 in Europe, especially in Mediterranean countries and among women. This trend may be linked to gender occupational segregation. In Mediterranean countries, digitalization increases female retirement, likely due to challenges in balancing digital work and family responsibilities while working from home. In Eastern countries, and to a lesser extent in Northern countries, digitalization leads to postponing retirement among women, likely due to greater gender equality in unpaid work. In contrast, the retirement age for men is less affected by the pandemic with no significant differences between digital and non-digital occupations. This may exacerbate the existing gender gap in labor force participation and pension outcomes." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, © Springer-Verlag) ((en))
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Literaturhinweis
Automation and the risk of labor market exclusion across Europe (2026)
Zitatform
Lamperti, Fabio & Davide Castellani (2026): Automation and the risk of labor market exclusion across Europe. In: Structural Change and Economic Dynamics, Jg. 77, S. 62-76. DOI:10.1016/j.strueco.2025.12.014
Abstract
"Labor market exclusion represents a major concern in several European economies, particularly affecting highly exposed demographic groups. This paper examines the potential effect of automation technologies on the risk of being locked into protracted unemployment or inactivity, using Labour Force Survey data for the European Union 27 countries and the United Kingdom, between 2009 and 2019. Our study employs repeated cross-sections of individual-level data to compute probabilities of exclusion outcomes due to automation adoption, controlling for several individual, macroeconomic, and region-specific characteristics, and for potential selection mechanisms. Findings highlight that, on average, the adoption of new automation technologies is associated with a higher probability of being inactive. This is consistent with the view that automation may exacerbate job insecurity, psychological discouragement, and detachment from job-seeking. This relationship is heterogeneous across demographic groups, with younger individuals being relatively more affected." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, © 2025 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V.) ((en))
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Literaturhinweis
Good Jobs or Bad Jobs? Immigrant Workers in the Gig Economy (2026)
Zitatform
Liu, Cathy Yang & Rory Renzy (2026): Good Jobs or Bad Jobs? Immigrant Workers in the Gig Economy. In: International migration review, Jg. 60, H. 1, S. 114-138. DOI:10.1177/01979183241309585
Abstract
"New work arrangements enabled by online platforms, or gig work, saw substantive growth during the COVID-19 pandemic. Various estimates have suggested the wide participation of workers in the gig economy, with minority and immigrant workers well represented. The quality of work is a multi-dimensional concept that goes beyond earnings. One framework of good jobs and bad jobs centers on control over work schedule, content and duration, stability, safety, benefits and insurance, as well as career advancement opportunities. Using a newly released national survey focused on entrepreneurs and workers in the United States, we find that about 18.5 percent immigrant workers and 21.1 percent native-born workers participated in the gig economy as their primary or secondary job. In terms of job quality, immigrant gig workers work shorter hours and have significantly less fringe benefits than non-gig workers as well as U.S.-born gig workers, reflecting a double disadvantage. However, they tend to have higher entrepreneurial aspirations, suggesting the transient nature of gig arrangements and potential for career advancements. This paper provides a comprehensive analysis of the characteristics and implication of immigrants’ engagement with the gig economy and offers policy and theoretical discussions." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))
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Literaturhinweis
Improving the effects of industrial robot adoption on employment, total factor productivity, and real wages in 52 world economies and OECD members (2026)
Zitatform
Matsuki, Takashi (2026): Improving the effects of industrial robot adoption on employment, total factor productivity, and real wages in 52 world economies and OECD members. In: Review of world economics, S. 1-32. DOI:10.1007/s10290-025-00626-z
Abstract
"This study investigates the effects of industrial robot adoption in the production process on unemployment rate, employment ratio in manufacturing, and total factor productivity (TFP) growth in 52 countries, and real wage growth in 31 and 20 OECD member countries for 2007–2019. The operating stock of robots per employee significantly impacts these variables; robot adoption lowers the unemployment rate and raises TFP and real wage growth. However, it reduces the employment ratio in manufacturing. In addition, the slight but significant positive contribution of robot adoption is observed only in the 90-percentile (top 10-percentile) of the real wage distribution. Interestingly, workers in the bottom and top tails (10- and 90-percentiles) of the wage distribution asymmetrically benefit from robotization. The industry ratio of value-added improves the labor market by reducing the unemployment rate and raising the employment ratio in manufacturing, TFP growth, and real wage growth. The information and communication technology (ICT) development also positively contributes to the employment ratio in Asia’s manufacturing, TFP growth, and real wage growth." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))
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Literaturhinweis
How local labour market skill relatedness and size moderate the impacts of automation (2026)
Zitatform
Njekwa Ryberg, Peter (2026): How local labour market skill relatedness and size moderate the impacts of automation. In: Regional Studies, Jg. 60, H. 1. DOI:10.1080/00343404.2025.2598031
Abstract
"This paper examines how local labour market skill relatedness and size moderate the impacts of automation on occupations across Swedish local labour markets. Using administrative data and a spatially explicit risk of automation measure that accounts for regional differences in occupational task contents, it finds a negative association between automation and employment growth and wage income growth for non-metropolitan occupations between 2011 and 2021. Skill relatedness and labour market size mitigate these negative relationships. In contrast, no negative associations are found for metropolitan occupations. Due to their higher shares of non-automatable tasks, they are more resilient to adverse automation effects." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))
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Literaturhinweis
Human-centred digital transitions and skill mismatches in European workplaces (2026)
Zitatform
Pouliakas, Konstantinos & Giulia Santangelo (2026): Human-centred digital transitions and skill mismatches in European workplaces. (CEDEFOP working paper series / European Centre for the Development of Vocational Training 2026,01), Luxembourg, 163 S. DOI:10.2801/9894877
Abstract
"New digital and artificial intelligence technologies are fast reshaping skill requirements in the EU labour market, fostering skill mismatches. There are marked concerns about the potentially adverse consequences of automation and AI on employment, as well as the lagging competitiveness of EU economies as individuals’ upskilling or reskilling is failing to adapt. To deepen understanding of how digitalisation is affecting the nature of work and skill mismatches in EU labour markets, Cedefop carried out the second wave of the European skills and jobs survey in 2021. In this special edition of Cedefop’s working paper series, ten original, short contributions have been drafted in which researchers explore in depth, for the first time, the ESJS2 microdata. The publication presents a wealth of focused and robust empirical analyses, covering a wide range of different issues on how the digital transition is affecting jobs, skills and training in Europe." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))
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Literaturhinweis
Where Have All the (Boomer) Routine Workers Gone? (2026)
Scotese, Carol A.;Zitatform
Scotese, Carol A. (2026): Where Have All the (Boomer) Routine Workers Gone? In: The B.E. Journal of Economic Analysis and Policy, S. 1-44. DOI:10.1515/bejeap-2024-0396
Abstract
"This paper examines the employment outcomes of a cohort of non-college educated individuals who exit employment from occupations most exposed to automation risk. The analysis employs a novel set of granular task measures estimated from the detailed job attributes in the Occupational Information Network (O*NET). The granularity enables a rich characterization of non-routine work and task mobility choices for those without a college degree. The data yield multiple types of interpersonal, decision-making, cognitive, and technical tasks. Employing the granular tasks to analyze the employment outcomes for non-college educated workers who transition out of routine work, this study finds (1) the granular measures detect abstract tasks performed intensively in a range of skill contexts, (2) when exiting routine intensive work, non-college propensity to enter abstract work is just under 65 %, and (3) approximately one-quarter of those entries are into tasks yielding average wage gains for those making that transition." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, © De Gruyter) ((en))
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Literaturhinweis
AI Skills Improve Job Prospects: Causal Evidence from a Hiring Experiment (2026)
Zitatform
Stephany, Fabian, Ole Teutloff & Angelo Leone (2026): AI Skills Improve Job Prospects: Causal Evidence from a Hiring Experiment. (arXiv papers), 46 S. DOI:10.48550/arXiv.2601.13286
Abstract
"The growing adoption of artificial intelligence (AI) technologies has heightened interest in the labour market value of AI-related skills, yet causal evidence on their role in hiring decisions remains scarce. This study examines whether AI skills serve as a positive hiring signal and whether they can offset conventional disadvantages such as older age or lower formal education. We conduct an experimental survey with 1,700 recruiters from the United Kingdom and the United States. Using a paired conjoint design, recruiters evaluated hypothetical candidates represented by synthetically designed résumés. Across three occupations – graphic designer, officeassistant, and software engineer –, AI skills significantly increase interview invitation probabilities by approximately 8 to 15 percentage points. AI skills also partially or fully offset disadvantages related to age and lower education, with effects strongest for office assistants, where formal AI certification plays an additional compensatory role. Effects are weaker for graphic designers, consistent with more skeptical recruiter attitudes toward AI in creative work. Finally, recruiters’ own background and AI usage significantly moderate these effects. Overall, the findings demonstrate that AI skills function as a powerful hiring signal and can mitigate traditional labour market disadvantages, with implications for workers’ skill acquisition strategies and firms’ recruitment practices." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))
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Literaturhinweis
Artificial intelligence and technological unemployment (2026)
Zitatform
Wang, Ping & Tsz-Nga Wong (2026): Artificial intelligence and technological unemployment. In: Journal of monetary economics, Jg. 158. DOI:10.1016/j.jmoneco.2026.103905
Abstract
"How large are the effects of artificial intelligence (AI) on labor productivity and unemployment? We develop a labor-search model of technological unemployment where AI learns from workers, raises productivity, and displaces them if renegotiation fails. The model admits three steady states: no AI; some AI with limited capability, more job creation but higher unemployment; unbounded AI with endogenous growth and employment gains. Calibrated to U.S. data, the model implies a threefold productivity gain in the long run for workers exposed to AI but a 23% employment loss, half within five years. Plausible parameters give rise to global and local indeterminacy with endogenous cycles in productivity and unemployment, underscoring the uncertainty of AI’s impacts in line with a wide range of empiricalfindings. Equilibria are inefficient despite the Hosios condition; subsidizing jobs at risk of AI displacement is constrained optimal." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, © 2026 Elsevier B.V. All rights are reserved, including those for text and data mining, AI training, and similar technologies.) ((en))
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Literaturhinweis
The Impact of Aging and AI on Japan's Labor Market: Challenges and Opportunities (2025)
Asao, Kohei; Seitani, Haruki; Stepanyan, Ara; Xu, TengTeng;Zitatform
Asao, Kohei, Haruki Seitani, Ara Stepanyan & TengTeng Xu (2025): The Impact of Aging and AI on Japan's Labor Market: Challenges and Opportunities. (IMF working papers / International Monetary Fund 2025,184), Washington, DC, 17 S.
Abstract
"This paper explores the complex roles of demographic changes and technological innovation in shaping Japan's labor market. We use regression analysis to assess the impact of population aging on labor productivity and shortages. Our findings indicate that the aging workforce contributes to labor shortages and potentially weighs on labor productivity. We also investigate occupational level data to identify the complementarity and substitutability of AI in occupational tasks as well as skill transferability. Our research reveals that Japanese workers face lower exposure to AI compared to their counterparts in other advanced economies, thereby constraining AI's potential to mitigate labor shortages. Furthermore, the disparities in skill requirements across occupations with different AI exposures highlight the importance of facilitating labor mobility from displaced jobs to those in demand." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))
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Literaturhinweis
On automation, labor reallocation and welfare (2025)
Zitatform
Auray, Stéphane & Aurélien Eyquem (2025): On automation, labor reallocation and welfare. In: Journal of Economic Dynamics and Control, Jg. 177. DOI:10.1016/j.jedc.2025.105129
Abstract
"We develop an open-economy model of endogenous automation with heterogeneous firms and labor-market reallocation to quantify the contribution of various trends to the adoption of robots in the U.S. economy. The decline in the relative price of robots is the major trend leading to automation, but interacts with other trends that either hinder (rising entry costs, rising markups) or slightly foster (rising labor productivity, declining trade costs) the adoption of robots. Taken alone, the decline in the relative price of robots produces moderate welfare gains in the long run, but less than labor productivity growth. We then exploit our model to show that a decline in the relative price of robots (i) generates small positive cross-country automation spillovers and (ii) produces inefficient labor-market reallocation since a small subsidy on robots combined with a training subsidy can generate small welfare gains. Our main conclusion is that automation can not be simply modeled as an exogenous decline in the price of robots, and must be analyzed in a broader framework taking into account trends affecting firms, such as the decline in business dynamism and the rise in markups." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku, © 2025 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier B.V.) ((en))
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Literaturhinweis
Expertise (2025)
Autor, David; Thompson, Neil;Zitatform
Autor, David & Neil Thompson (2025): Expertise. In: Journal of the European Economic Association, Jg. 23, H. 4, S. 1203-1271. DOI:10.1093/jeea/jvaf023
Abstract
"When job tasks are automated, does this augment or diminish the value of labor in the tasks that remain? We argue the answer depends on whether removing tasks raises or reduces the expertise required for remaining non-automated tasks. Since the same task may be relatively expert in one occupation and inexpert in another, automation can simultaneously replace experts in some occupations while augmenting expertise in others. We propose a conceptual model of occupational task bundling that predicts that changing occupational expertise requirements have countervailing wage and employment effects: automation that decreases expertise requirements reduces wages but permits the entry of less expert workers; automation that raises requirements raises wages but reduces the set of qualified workers. We develop a novel, content-agnostic method for measuring job task expertise, and we use it to quantify changes in occupational expertise demands over four decades attributable to job task removal and addition. We document that automation has raised wages and reduced employment in occupations where it eliminated inexpert tasks, but lowered wages and increased employment in occupations where it eliminated expert tasks. These effects are distinct from—and in the case of employment,opposite to—the effects of changing task quantities. The expertise framework resolves the puzzle of why routine task automation has lowered employment but often raised wages in routine task-intensive occupations. It provides a general tool for analyzing how task automation and new task creation reshape the scarcity value of human expertise within and across occupations." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))
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Literaturhinweis
Intersecting Shocks: The Combined Labor Market Impacts of Automation and Immigration (2025)
Bennett, Patrick; Johnsen, Julian Vedeler;Zitatform
Bennett, Patrick & Julian Vedeler Johnsen (2025): Intersecting Shocks: The Combined Labor Market Impacts of Automation and Immigration. (CESifo working paper 12217), München, 41 S.
Abstract
"We study how the labor market shocks of automation and immigration interact to shape workers' outcomes. Using matched employer –employee data from Norwegian administrative registers, we combine animmigration shock triggered by the European Union's 2004 enlargement with an automation shock based on the adoption of industrial robots across Europe. Although these shocks largely occur in separate industries, we show that automation reduces earnings not only in manufacturing but also in construction, where tasks overlap with robot-exposed sectors. Importantly, workers jointly exposed to automation and immigration suffer earnings losses greater than those facing either shock in isolation. These losses are driven by downward occupational mobility into low-wage services and re-sorting into lower-premium firms. Even within the Norwegian welfare system, the ability of social insurance to offset these long-run earnings declines is limited. Our findings underscore the importance of analyzing labor market shocks jointly, rather than in isolation, to fully understand their distributional consequences." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en))
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- Arbeitsformen, Arbeitszeit und Gesundheit
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- Wirtschaftsbereiche
- Arbeits- und sozialrechtliche Aspekte / digitale soziale Sicherung
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